Columbia Asset Management Reduces Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Columbia Asset Management lowered its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 5.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,976 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 970 shares during the quarter. Columbia Asset Management's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,269,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,184,364,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 43,447.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,730,259 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,230,239,000 after purchasing an additional 3,721,693 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Caterpillar by 69.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,924,054 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,060,730,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196,861 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $353,231,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 50,072.7% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 804,770 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $291,938,000 after purchasing an additional 803,166 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 6,653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on CAT. Morgan Stanley upgraded Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded Caterpillar from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the company from $309.00 to $395.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $372.92.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.3%

CAT traded up $4.53 during trading on Friday, reaching $353.49. The stock had a trading volume of 1,605,025 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,597,720. The stock's 50 day moving average is $320.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $349.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The company has a market capitalization of $166.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.37. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $267.30 and a one year high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.35 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. Caterpillar's revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.60 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st were issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.49%.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc manufactures and sells construction and mining equipment, off-highway diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives in worldwide. Its Construction Industries segment offers asphalt pavers, compactors, road reclaimers, forestry machines, cold planers, material handlers, track-type tractors, excavators, telehandlers, motor graders, and pipelayers; compact track, wheel, track-type, backhoe, and skid steer loaders; and related parts and tools.